Cyberattack on TfL disrupts taxi licensing leaving some cabbies unlicensed and unable work, says trade rep
A recent cyberattack on Transport for London (TfL) has caused disruption to taxi licensing, leaving some drivers unable to work, say trade reps.
Steve McNamara, General Secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA), revealed that the attack led to the shutdown of several key systems to protect confidential data from being compromised.
The National Crime Agency has since made arrests following a thorough investigation supported by government computer experts. However, the impact on some taxi drivers has been significant. According to industry representatives, some drivers found themselves unlicensed, unable to plate their vehicles, or mistakenly issued penalties for failing to pay congestion and ULEZ charges.
McNamara praised the LTDA licensing and penalty charge notice (PCN) teams for their swift action in resolving many of the issues for affected drivers, allowing them to get back to work. He also acknowledged the dedication of TfL staff, many of whom worked late hours and weekends to address the problems caused by the attack.
The cyberattack has highlighted vulnerabilities within TfL’s systems and raised questions about how such incidents are managed to avoid disruptions for essential workers like licensed taxi drivers.
Steve McNamara, General Secretary of Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA), said in TAXI Newspaper: “The news that TfL was the victim of a massive cyber attack is no secret to anyone who has recently tried to renew their bill, change an address, respond to a complaint, licence or pass a cab or do anything that involved any interaction with our regulator.
“The attack was incredibly clever and to prevent the hackers from accessing confidential data, large parts of TfL systems, including taxi licensing, were shut down to ensure our data was not compromised. There have been arrests following a major investigation led by the National Crime Agency, who were assisted by computer experts from various government agencies.
“That is, however, of little comfort to anyone who was unlicensed, could not get their cab plated, or received one of the hundreds of penalties mistakenly issued to taxis for not paying the congestion charge or ULEZ.
McNamara added: “It has to be said that many TfL staff went above and beyond, with many working late at night and all weekends to resolve problems that were created through no fault of their own. TfL regularly get a lot of criticism from cabbies so its only right that the hard work put in to help our members should be acknowledged, thank you!
“Equally though, no hard-working taxi driver should be put out of work, even if only temporarily, because TfL are unable to process their renewal in time, especially when they did everything right and got everything submitted well in advance. If licences can’t be issued there needs to be an alternative solution.”
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